1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a content recording/reproducing apparatus, method, storage medium and computer program, and particularly to a content recording/reproducing apparatus, method, storage medium and computer program in which end users can record/reproduce content distributed via broadcast and the like.
More specifically, the invention is directed to a content recording/reproducing apparatus, method, storage medium and computer program for recording/reproducing content for which a record holding period or a reproducible period is restricted for protection of copyrights, etc., and particularly to a content recording/reproducing apparatus, method, storage medium and computer program which allow users to easily understand a mechanism of time limit for content access.
2. Description of Related Art
Progress in digital technology has made it possible to store a massive volume of audio/video data. Hard disk drives (HDD) having a storage capacity of, for example, several tens of gigabytes or even more are now available relatively inexpensively, and so are HDD-based recording apparatuses (for example, with reference to “A Line-Up of New Devices for Recording TV Programs in HDDs”, in “Nikkei Electronics”, No. 727, pp.27-28, 1998), “Digital Technology using HDDs Finally Available for Home Users”, in “Nikkei Electronics”, No. 727, pp.41-46, 1998) and the like).
In the United States for example, devices are marketed which allow a user to record received broadcast content in a large-capacity storage medium such as a hard disk so that the user can access the recorded content in some later time in the event that he or she were interrupted by a telephone call or an unexpected guest during watching, for example.
However, recording of digital material including broadcast content by end users, if left unrestricted, would be a threat to copyrights holders such as broadcasting companies as their rights are likely to be infringed, particularly in view of the fact that digital material is extremely vulnerable to copying and tampering. Thus, it would be preferable to impose some restriction on the access to content when and after the content is recorded and reproduced through a content recording/reproducing apparatus.
For example, a time limit may be imposed for the content so that a user can hold the content recorded or access the content within that time limit, whereby unauthorized access to the content can be prevented. In one specific example, a user can access content only within one hour after the content is broadcasted, i.e., the content becomes overdue in one hour, after which the user can no longer reproduce it. In one implementation, the content recording/reproducing apparatus does not hold any content for which a predetermined time has elapsed from a broadcasting time or a receiving time (i.e., the apparatus deletes the content from the hard disk), or does not reproduce any content to which accessible time has expired (i.e., the apparatus does not read the content from the hard disk).
Thus, a system for managing use of content in terms of a record holding period or a reproducible period may be technically effective in restricting unauthorized access to the content. However, a key to efficient running of this system would require that the system be intelligible to all users or that the users learn on how long they still can play their recorded content. Otherwise, when they are back from what have interrupted them and are now ready to reproduce the content, they would doubt whether anything is wrong with the apparatus as the apparatus does not accept their command or would feel distressed about what goes on with their recorded content.